Press Release: Report shows overall positive impact of mobility of Bulgarian and Romanian workers on EU economy

A new report published by the European Commission highlights the overall positive role that mobile workers from Bulgaria and Romania (EU-2) have played in receiving countries' economies.

These workers have contributed to the skills mix as well as filling vacancies in sectors and jobs with labour shortages such as in construction and the domestic and food services sectors. Estimates also show a positive impact of the free movement of Romanian and Bulgarian workers on the EU's long-term GDP with an increase by about 0.3% for EU-27 (0.4% for eu-15).

Studies show too that there has been no significant impact on unemployment or wages of local workers in receiving countries: in the EU-15 studies show wages are on average only 0.28% lower they would have been without mobility of the EU-2. The report also highlights that there is no evidence of a disproportionate use of benefits by intra-EU mobile EU citizens and that the impact of recent flows on national public finances is negligible or positive.

• Primary Source

European Commission: Memo/11/773: Commission report on transitional arrangements regarding free movement of workers from Bulgaria and Romania http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/11/773&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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